Driver, on phone when man struck and killed in Worcester, gets probation

Wednesday

Feb 6, 2013 at 6:00 AM

By Gary V. Murray TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF

A Framingham woman who was talking on her cellphone when the car she was driving struck and killed a pedestrian Nov. 22 on Lincoln Street was placed on probation Tuesday after pleading guilty to driving so as to endanger.

Yayra R. Dika, 31, of 27A Interfaith Terrace, Framingham, was driving north on Lincoln Street shortly after 10 a.m. Nov. 22 when her 2009 Toyota Corolla hit 60-year-old Julio Oliveras of Worcester as he was crossing the road near 560 Lincoln St.

Mr. Oliveras, who suffered head injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene, was not within a marked crosswalk when he was hit, although there was one less than 300 feet away, according to court records.

Ms. Dika told investigators she did not see Mr. Oliveras before hitting him, according to Assistant District Attorney Anthony H. Melia.

Police confiscated Ms. Dika’s cellphone on the morning of the accident. After obtaining a search warrant, investigators said they were able to determine that Ms. Dika was talking on the phone when her vehicle struck Mr. Oliveras.

Judge Andrew M. D’Angelo placed Ms. Dika on probation for 5 years after she pleaded guilty Tuesday afternoon in Central District Court to a charge of driving so as to endanger. The sentence was recommended by Mr. Melia and Ms. Dika’s lawyer, Michael H. Erlich.

A motor vehicle homicide by negligent driving charge was dismissed as part of the plea agreement and a charge of failure to slow for a pedestrian was filed after a finding of responsibility.

Mr. Melia told the judge Ms. Dika’s lack of a criminal record and the fact that she stopped and called 911 after the accident and cooperated with police were factors that were considered in the resolution of the case.

Mr. Erlich told the judge his client, who has a son, came to the United States from Ghana about 10 years ago. He said Ms. Dika works as a nursing aide and is planning to go back to school in hopes of getting her nursing degree.

Ms. Dika will lose her driver’s license for five years as a result of her guilty plea and was also ordered as conditions of probation to complete the Brains at Risk program, to perform 250 hours of community service and to pay a $250 head injury fee.

Mr. Oliveras’ daughter, Vanessa Oliveras of Lawrence, read an emotional impact statement in court in which she said her father was “like a best friend to me.”

“He had a lot of family that loved him and miss him,” Ms. Oliveras said of the 60-year-old father of four.

Ms. Oliveras also thanked Ms. Dika for stopping and calling 911 after hitting her father and for accepting responsibility for her actions by entering her guilty plea.

“I want to thank you for having a heart. A lot of people don’t want to ever admit to doing wrong,” Ms. Oliveras said, adding that the resolution of the case brought her and her family a sense of closure.

Ms. Oliveras and Ms. Dika, both in tears, hugged one another as they walked out of the courtroom.